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Comment: A copy that has been read, but remains in excellent condition. Pages are intact and are not marred by notes or highlighting, but may contain a neat previous owner name. The spine remains undamaged. At ThriftBooks, our motto is: Read More, Spend Less.

-2013 Bronze Medal Winner: Business Fable Category of the AXIOM Business Book Awards.

-2012 Award-Winning Finalist in the 'Business: Management & Leadership' category of The 2012 USA Best Book Awards, sponsored by USA Book News.

WHEN YOU CANNOT AFFORD FOR THEM TO FAIL, RECONNECT YOUR LEADERS TO THEIR POWER

Leaders First: Six Bold Steps… shows a leader team planning, developing, and reorganizing their new leadership structure, building for the long term and adopting construction management as their strategy. Assessment checklists give CEOs, managers' and board members guides to evaluate and restructure their top leaders. Insights for coaching, consulting, and training managers are explained in detail from the start to the finish.

One day a construction company's top managers, resurrected their entrepreneurial spirit and committed to make their company a regional industry leader. With their president, they completed six growth-enhancing, capacity building and value-added steps, all while defending their company from competitive market pressures and bleak economic times. They resolved, not without some anxiety, many internal antagonisms, confusion and violated expectations. By leading together, they ultimately designed their first thoughtful leadership structure and unique strategic vision--guides to stellar performance for many years to come.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Gene has written a great story that contains lessons on leadership, business practice, organizational design and industry challenges. All leaders in the building industry will benefit from his message. Leaders First is a great way to teach and develop business leadership insight for your teams of current and emerging leaders. I highly recommend reading this book.

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Ron Magnus, Managing Director, FMI Corporation

The scope of (Leaders First: Six Bold Steps) is ambitious, not just improving a single leader, but reorganizing leadership structure throughout a company. While this book focuses on leadership in construction, its lessons are applicable to myriad industries. There is no doubt that readers will enjoy this book, glean some valuable nuggets of strategic leadership, and likely recognize friends and colleagues in its characters.

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Blue Ink Reviews

We have known and worked with Gene for over thirty years. No one knows the area of accountability and responsibility better. Leaders First is the product of decades of work with real clients on very real problems. His book offers deep wisdom in an enjoyable novelized format.

About the Author

Gene Morton has 30 years of experience developing leaders and consulting through organization development and leadership system redesign. Building on his M.A. in Industrial Psychology, and advanced training in organization development, he designed novel change models leaders use to complete their performance enhancing reorganizations and mergers.

The process described in Leaders First bridges the gap from strategy to execution. As I read this book, I realized why I had seen so much disconnect in organizations I’ve worked in. There is something missing in many organizations around management commitment, role definition, and accountability. These are familiar words to be sure, but the parable style of this book shows what these elements look like when they are really working. The trick is, using the Leaders First process means doing internal (i.e., personal) work as well as external work: we must subordinate our own needs (and ego) to the greater good. It’s not easy work but it can be extremely meaningful, beneficial, and fulfilling work.

I’m not usually a fan of the parable-style business book, but in this case I make an exception. If your organization struggles to turn strategy into action, has management dysfunction, or generally seems to work at cross-purposes, I absolutely recommend this book. And don’t let the title fool you: this book applies to any business.

Read this BEFORE attempting to define strategy and vision. This book will transform both as it defines the real foundation for success for any business. Genes process of starting with establishing commitment from the leadership team and linking accountability to the client outcomes makes it clear WHAT Leadership really is. He explains how roles should be defined and aligned which is essential to the successful execution of a company's goals. After reading this book, it's apparent how the structure either distracts from or enhances the efficiency and performance. Much like the foundation of a house, if the structure isn't completed correctly, the resulting cracks and misalignments will ultimately cost a fortune.Any easy read, I really enjoyed the "story" and the way the turnaround process unfolded. As a business consultant, it changed how I advise my clients to make necessary changes that stick.

Leadership is key in any business. And the difference between good leadership and bad can make all the difference in the outcome of whatever the product line is. Gene Morton teaches leaders and wanna-be leaders effective skills for connecting leader power to positively positive outcomes. Some of his insights: Make leaders part of a team. Make sure everyone is on the same page. Make sure roles are clear. Create results that are based on the customer's needs. Above all - getting all key players to be on the same page is the foundation of this excellent work. While it uses the construction industry as an example, these concepts apply to all business. And with his years of experience, Gene Morton is the go-to leader expert. BUY THIS BOOK if leadership is part of your daily works.

Gene Morton;s book, Leaders First, actually creates excitement among senior managers greater than I've seen in the past. I work with senior managers and believe that if the CEO were to put his or her foot down and get everyone to read Gene's book and then have some meetings about it, they'd inevitably see change. This is really about creating integration. Page by page, Gene gives us an insight into the senior managers of a major construction company and the struggles, fears and anxiety virtually everyone feels. In the end of the intervention, Gene shows us how remarkable his methodology works. This is not a boring book, but an exciting and sometime painful story that has a joyful and creative ending. The hard nosed management ideas are interspersed throughout the book with the story-line cleverly inserted in the right places. Companies of any kind should read this book.

lEADERS fIRST BY GENE MORTON provides us wirh a hands on approach to Leadership and Organization Development. Although it focuses on the construction industry its step by step process could apply to other organizations. Many would judge that the success of many change efforts are short lived and die on the vine. A good part of LEADERS FIRST focuses on the issue of sustainabiiy as well as the overall change methodology.

There are added benefits for one working in construction. Morton's knowledge is reflected in his clear writing and readable style.There is a strong executive development theme achieved by the leaderfs who apply the six step process. A good read for ececutives and consultants.

Dear Gene, this is an excellent book with proven methods on boosting any company's performance and leaders competency. I learned many creative techniques dealing with personal agendas that often happen in the workplace interfering with critical relationships, communication among peers and team members. Your book illustrates the value of creating unique visions for any company's goals; and it clearly describes ways teams can go about discovering new ways to win customer, employee and community loyalty. I loved it. Sally

As a business owner, I found this book an absolute boon. Fragmentation of leadership is something we all need to overcome to some degree within a corporation, and team work is everything. Gene's perspective made me think differently about the way I handle my own corporation both on a day-to-day basis and in long-term planning. A must for anyone in the business world, in any industry.